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VoIP Services
Each of these VoIP services offer high quality local and long distance calling, will allow most people to save hundreds of dollars a year and include tons of great features. To learn more about VoIP, visit our FAQs.

VoIP Comparisons & Reviews

Service Name: Plans: Setup Fees: $ Back Guarantee & Cancel Policy: Promotions: Countries Included: Rating: Bottom Line:
Vonage Unlimited: $24.99
500 mins: $14.99 		No activation fee if sign up by 7/15/08; $9.95 S&H Free to cancel within 30 days/under 250 mins or $39.99 after 30 days First month free with unlimited plan; Free adapter; No activation fee if sign up by 7/15/08 USA, Canada, Puerto Rico, Italy, France, Spain, UK, Ireland Best overall quality, reliability & value; Call 1-800-560-4243 to order
VoIP.com Annual: $199/yr Unlimited: $19.95/mo
200 mins: $9.95/mo 		Annual Plan: $0 Unlimited Monthly: $29.95 200 mins: $29.95 plus $14.95 S&H Free to cancel within 30 days or $39.95 after 30 days No setup fees on annual plan; First month free with unlimited plan USA, Canada, Puerto Rico Great value with best international rates
Lingo Unlimited: $21.95
500 mins: $14.95 		$29.95 plus $14.95 S&H Free to cancel within 30 days or $59.95 after 30 days First 3 months free with unlimited plan USA, Canada, P.R., Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, S. Korea, Singapore 3 months free when ordered from this site; Great for frequent international callers
Via Talk Unlimited: $8.29-$22.95
500 mins: $9.95-$14.95 		$29.99 plus $10.95 S&H and up Free to cancel within 14 days or $49.95 disconnection fee per line after 14 days; No refunds on activation or S&H 2 years for $199 USA, Canada Cheapest VoIP plan available; Free 2nd phone line
AT&T CallVantage Unlimited: $24.99 $29.99 plus $9.95 S&H None; $29.99 disconnection fee 1 month free USA, Canada, Puerto Rico Price and features of VoIP with the AT&T name
VoIP Your Life Unlimited: $23.97
Global: $29.97
Basic: $14.97/mo plus 2.4¢/min 		$19.95 plus $5.95 S&H None but no charge if you can't get it working Free hardware; Free virtual numbers; No commitments USA, Canada; Global plan includes 30 countries Very good customer service and customer-friendly policies
Packet8 Unlimited: $24.99
Unlimited Global: $29.99 		$29.99 plus approx. $15 S&H Free to cancel within 30 days or $59 after 30 days First month free; Free phone system after rebate USA, Canada; Also have international plan to 40 countries Good value and range of plans; Only video phone provider

VONAGE REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

[Editor's Note: Vonage has set up an exclusive 800 number where NextAdvisor.com visitors can speak to a Vonage representative to ask questions and ensure they get the latest and best deal possible. If you are interested in ordering Vonage we recommend that you call the number: 1-800-560-4243.] Vonage is not the cheapest VoIP service, but our testing and research has shown that it is the best. Vonage has invested the most time and money in building its network and in acquiring new customers (it has the most customers of any VoIP provider and recently completed an IPO). As a result, Vonage provides the highest quality service of any of our recommended providers and is the best choice for those who need or want superior call quality and reliability. Since SunRocket went out of business and their old customers have been signing up in droves for new services, other VoIP providers have had some trouble maintaining good call quality and customer service due to the large influx of customers, but Vonage's large scale has enabled them to keep running much more smoothly. At $24.99 per month and your first month free for their unlimited plan, Vonage is still priced to save most people hundreds of dollars a year compared to traditional phone service. Vonage is currently waiving the $29.95 activation fee if you sign up by 7/15/08. Vonage is also the only VoIP provider we recommend that does not require you to use a credit card (you can pay from your checking account instead). Their 500 minute plan at only $14.99 per month is an even better deal for those who call less frequently. Vonage recently made their service an even better value by including calls to Italy, France, Spain, UK and Ireland for free in their unlimited plans, making it a fantastic value for frequent callers to those countries. Vonage has also recently ramped up their efforts in customer service to make sure you can get through to a representative quickly if you need to.

VOIP.COM REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

Voip.com offers a great selection of inexpensive plans and for those that don't want to pay for a year upfront, we think Voip.com offers the best value monthly unlimited plan. They also offer possibly the best year prepay plan now that Voip.com is not charging any set-up fees on it. Their monthly unlimited plan for $19.95 is as cheap as you will find for a pay-as-you-go plan, especially when you include their current first month free promotion and no shipping and handling charges for this plan. They also offer an annual unlimited plan for $199 per year and a 200 minutes per month plan for $9.95 per month. Voip.com has two other main differentiators from the competition. First, their international rates are the cheapest we have found to most countries. Second, they boast an impressive feature set that can almost all be managed online. Overall, Voip.com offers a strong value proposition with something for everyone. We recently increased their rating to 5 stars as they have now been around for quite a while and in addition to great pricing, have proven to have a stable service. We like their monthly unlimited plan and cheap international rates the best.

LINGO REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

As an exclusive offer for visitors to our site, you can now get 3 free months of Lingo phone service. This is an amazing value. Lingo is a great all-around value but is a particularly good choice for those that want to call internationally often. Lingo is the only leading provider whose standard monthly plan includes calls to Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand and some Asian countries (although Vonage recently included calls to several Western European countries). So you can pay $21.95 per month to call anyone in not only the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico all you want, but also anyone in the aforementioned countries. Even if you never or rarely call internationally, Lingo's price, functionality and reliability make it a great choice. Lingo is currently offering their monthly unlimited plan for $21.95 per month with the first 3 months free. Lingo also has an annual plan where you pay $195 upfront and receive unlimited calling for the rest of the year to the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Please note that this unlimited plan does not include calls to the foreign countries that Lingo's monthly plan includes, so the monthly plan with 3 months free is probably a better value. Their 500 minute plan is just $14.95 but again only includes calling to U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Also note that all plans include $29.95 activation fee and a $59.95 cancellation fee if you cancel after 30 days but before 1 year. They will, however, give you a prorated refund for your unused months if you buy the annual plan and cancel before 1 year. Overall, Lingo's monthly unlimited plan with 3 months free really stands out and is a great value for anyone, especially for frequent callers to certain countries.

VIA TALK REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

ViaTalk is currently offering unlimited long distance phone service for one year for $199 plus an extra year free promotion for new Viatalk customers, making ViaTalk the cheapest VoIP plan available. Also included with this plan are unlimited calls to Canada and a 2nd phone line. The two line configuration activates two separate extensions to your home phone. This is great if you have a teenager always on the phone. You can simply pick up line two and either dial out or receive calls. While this is clearly a great deal, as with any great deal it comes with some fine print: if you cancel after the 14 day money back guarantee period you will receive a pro-rated refund for any remaining prepaid months as well as be charged $49.95 per line. You do get the full balance back if you cancel during the 14-day money-back guarantee period. We should also note that ViaTalk's $29.95 activation fee and $9.95 shipping and handling fee are not refundable. If you don't want to commit for 2 years, Viatalk has a 500 minute plan for $9.95 per month and they offer several different plans and time commitments, so you have a lot of flexibility to choose what's right for you.

AT&T CALLVANTAGE REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

AT&T has decided that if its customers are going to be stolen away by the price and features of a VoIP service, it may as well be AT&T's own VoIP service. AT&T CallVantage is a very reliable VoIP service with a very good feature set. It is not among the cheapest VoIP services but at $24.99 for its unlimited plan, it is at the same price point as some of the other premium VoIP services like Vonage. AT&T CallVantage is also offering the first month free for new monthly unlimited customers. The main things that set AT&T apart are its excellent call quality, its strong brand name and the associated assurance that the service will be there for the long haul. For those that subscribe to AT&T's DSL service, an additional advantage is having the same company providing your VoIP and internet services, making it much easier to solve any problems that might arise. (Note that AT&T CallVantage is available just about everywhere in the U.S., not just where AT&T provides high-speed internet.) The main thing AT&T is lacking is a money-back guarantee. AT&T has two other plans, but we don't recommend either. They have a local only plan for $19.99 per month but we think it makes a lot more sense to pay the extra $5 per month to get unlimited long distance and a month free. They also have a 2-line plan for $49.99 but the second line only gives you 500 minutes a month. If you want two lines we would recommend you sign up for the single line plan and just get a second unlimited line (you can do this in the sign-up process). This makes the total cost for two lines just $49.98 per month plus you'll get a month free on both new lines. Overall, for those that want the reliability of a big company, AT&T CallVantage is a great choice.

VOIP YOUR LIFE REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

VoIP Your Life is not as big as Vonage or Verizon but they stand out from the crowd by offering excellent customer service and very customer-friendly policies. They also provide easy-to-reach and very competent U.S. customer service. VoIP Your Life's plans are not the cheapest but they are still very well priced and may be your cheapest option when you factor in the limited number of extra fees they charge. Their basic plan is just $14.97 per month and includes incoming calls for free but costs $14.97 per month plus 2.4 cents per minute for outbound domestic calls. We think a better value is the $23.97 Premier Unlimited plan that also gives you unlimited outbound calls anywhere in the U.S. and Canada. If you call internationally with any regularity, their Premier Global Unlimited Plan is a fantastic value as long as the countries you're calling to are included in their plan. VoIP Your Life doesn't mention their money-back guarantee but they have assured us that if you cannot get your service working properly for some reason, you will not be charged. Overall, VoIP Your Life's two unlimited plans offer fantastic values that look even better when combined with their strong customer service.

PACKET8 REVIEW:Go to Site | Back to Chart

Packet8, one of the early players in VoIP, offers both a monthly $24.99 unlimited plan and a $199 annual unlimited plan. Both of these plans come with your first month free and a very high quality free (after rebate) phone system. If you don't want to commit to a year or pay $199 upfront, Packet8's $24.99 per month ($29.99 activation fee) unlimited plan is not a bad one, but is a bit more expensive than some. Their $199 annual plan is a fantastic deal but comes with few caveats: they charge a $29.99 activation fee, there is no prorated refund if you cancel after the 30 day trial period, and there are additional taxes. All that being said, the combination of a very high quality free phone system and one month free is attractive. For frequent international callers, Packet8 offers a great value unlimited calling plan that includes calls to 40 different countries for $29.99 per month (it also includes the first month free and free phone system). Packet8 also offers another feature none of the competitors do: video phones and video calling plans. These are very cool devices that Packet8 will sell you at a discount when you subscribe to one of their plans.